Saturday, September 26, 2009

Take Me Back to The Black Hills

My rating: 4 of 5 starsAnother fun read from Nora Roberts. Not her best, but still good. I especially enjoyed the descriptions of the Black Hills and the refuge animals.

Another thing I really admire about Roberts is her dialogue. She uses terms real people use. Consider the contraction "I'd've" We all say it. Authors seem to fear it. It's real. I say, if you're writing popular fiction or have characters who speak popular American English, toss that fear aside and go with it.

There are also some possibilities for sequels in this novel, although I don't know if response will be positive enough for it to warrant a sequel. Many of the assistants and interns seem to be characters screaming to be further explored. That would, unfortunately, put Roberts in the position of writing two series at once, so that may be another variable.

I didn't find the hero to be as lovable as her recent loving nerdish ones. The heroine, as always, was strong and smart.

Would I recommend this to a man in a bear suit? Possibly. The man may have an interest in animal refuge work. Or not. His choice.

Would I recommend this to a fan of Christian Romance? Possibly. It would depend on the reader's reason for reading Christian Romance. The heroine especially takes a spiritual journey as she finds love with the hero. So does the secondary character who comes to terms with love in her life. Swearing is not particularly prevalent. However, if the reader insists on a completely Christian interpretation of spirituality, this book would not be for him or her.

Would I recommend this to someone looking for something like what Charles Bukowski writes? Absolutely not.

Anne's starred items

About Me

When I started this, I was just a lowly librarian in Arizona trying to make either sense or nonsense of life.
Now I'm an overweight, middle-aged, retired white lady from Iowa still trying to make either sense of nonsense of life.